The Wood Elves
Selected Notes *Lotanyn is the largest remaining forest of the Wood Elves *The land of the wood elves is governed by by both Queen Vecuna and the Council of Elders, each holding equal power. Actions are rarely taken when the two power bases are in disagreement. *The Queen is selected by the people of all regions after the death of the current queen, this time during the selection is called "the mourning". It usually last about one year, but has been known to last up to ten. The council members are elected for ten years. Two councilmen for each region elected at alternate five year intervals. *Though the wood elf forest was once grand, years of human interference has left it divided. To make matters worse, the Spider invasion forced the Elves to retreat into the three most Northern forests of Valusia. Now likely overrun by Humans or worse, there are currently no plans to retake these abandoned lands. *The Queen's Cloaks are her highness's most trusted associates and follow her commands without question. Though there may be numerous trainees waiting in the wings, there are only ever four true Cloaks in existence at one time, and each are named after the four seasons: Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring. The Queen's Cloaks are the full embodiment of their season. The Spring Cloak is jovial and spirited. The Fall Cloak is morose and pessimistic. The Winter Cloak is cold and unfeeling. The Summer Cloak is fierce and passionate. One who takes up the mantle of the Cloak understands two things: that his or her life will be given in service to the Queen and that life as a Cloak is often brief by comparison. The Cloaks get their name from the magical garment they wear, though usually just a matching cowl is worn during travel. The Spring Cloak wears a cloak that looks to be made of fresh spring flowers and always has a matching aroma. The Summer Cloak wears a cloak that looks to be made of fresh ivy and has been said to radiate heat. The Fall Cloak wears a cloak that looks to be made of fallen leaves. The colors change upon the cloak daily, from deep purples and reds, all the fall colors. The Winter Cloak wears a cloak that looks to be made of newly fallen snow, wet and glistening in the light. Opposite of the Summer Cloak, it has been said to radiate cold. Elven Culture Elven culture is deeply influenced by the long life spans of the elven people. With the horizon of death so very far off in the future, elves have a very different perspective on time, and hence on life itself. The elven lifestyle is one of patience, leisure, and appreciation, rather than one of strife and desperate ambition. Because of this the culture of elves can appear very alien to the non-elven, particularly to humans who have the shortest life span of the sentient beings. Elves once ruled Valusia and much of Tarth, but the first spider war brought an end to their relatively peaceful and carefree reign. It was this war and the ensuing race wars that have molded much of elven culture since. The elves, being magical creatures by nature are not disturbed by paradox, and therefore their culture maintains deep inconsistencies which other races might not abide so easily. One of the greatest paradoxes is that an elf’s life is long, but they all train for warfare, which often puts an elf’s long life at risk of meeting an abrupt and early end. It is their long perspective on life that encourages them to appreciate the present moment for what it is - a precious gift that may be taken back at any moment. This paradox will lead elves to odd behaviors, such as setting into motion a project that may take a century to complete, only to put it on hold to go on a decade long adventure. What allows the elven culture to succeed despite their paradoxical nature is that they have a rapid breeding period, and youth is relatively short for an elf. Thus the elven population is very large, and at any one time a large number of people are working on and maintaining their culture, their homelands, and the general welfare of all elven kind. Elves are the most magical race on Tarth, and as such they are closely tied to the spirit world and the other planes of existence. While elves are aware of and form close ties with the spirit world, they ultimately use a magic that is arcane rather than spiritual, channeling energy from the non-material planes to accomplish their wills. However, shamans and sorcerers are not unheard of in elven culture, particularly to the west where the elves intermingle with the Khajiit. Elven family structure is communal. All children are raised by all adults, and generally speaking men and women have different lifestyles, live apart in communal dwellings, and interact intimately solely for mating purposes and fun. Marriage is unheard of in elven culture, as elves believe males and females were not meant to live together, but to come together for a season and move on. This view is tied to the elven philosophy of impermanence which is discussed below. Elven culture does not favor one sex over the other, though their leader is always a female. This is more for the recognition that a mother is more nurturing than a father, and women have a better ability to empathize and use their intuition to care for their charges, whereas men would use logic and order, which often backfires on those who rely on it too much. This equality of the sexes means that women are believed just as capable as men. Thus every member of the elven race must spend a few decades in the military. This usually occurs during the elf’s youth, before they go off on their pilgrimage to explore the surrounding world. Pilgrimage The purpose of the elven pilgrimage is to keep elven society from stagnating. With life spans upwards of a thousand years, it would be easy for the ancient elves to hold elven culture in a conservative lurch, refusing to change with the times. Recognizing this, the ancients devised the pilgrimage which would guarantee that the elven people always had exposure to and influence from the greater world. The youth who return from their pilgrimages bring back new technology and ideas, facts about the other peoples of the land, and an excitement for spreading change that refreshes the culture continuously. Nature and Imana Due to their close ties to nature and their long life spans, elves are aware of the fact that nothing lasts forever; seasons change, people die, time erodes all things. For this reason, elves do not make bonds with one another for longer than is convenient. This includes any manner of commitment. The elven ties to nature have fostered a belief in imana, the unified consciousness of nature. This belief inspired the elves to take on the role of protectors of nature, and is the single universal responsibility of all elves. Elves are intimately tied to imana, so much so that they can feel the suffering of the planet when extreme destruction occurs. The coming of the spiders and their subsequent pollution of the planet has wounded the spirit of the elven people, driving some to levels of savagery the race has not known since its infancy. Imana also inspires a great appreciation for natural beauty. An elf feels a profound spiritual longing for beauty, and thus much of an elf’s life is devoted to making and appreciating beauty. This can even be seen in the elven style of fighting, which is as graceful as a dance, and just as deadly. Beauty and nature are the cornerstones of elven culture, and thus their cities in the trees are gorgeous places, blended perfectly with their surroundings. Elves also decorate themselves, either with tattoos or paints and piercings. Effect of the Race Wars The race wars put a darker edge to elven culture. It was after the first race war that it became mandatory for all elves to spend decades in the military. It was also at this time that elves began to explore the darker planes of existence and tap into destructive magical power. For an elf, war and violence are doubly terrible, for they experience the spiritual resonance of pain and suffering as they are inflicting it upon others, and having it inflicted upon themselves. It is not uncommon for elves to go mad during war time. Indeed, it is almost a blessing, for in the throes of madness an elf is capable of tolerating levels of pain no other living creature could abide. This characteristic of elven warriors makes them far fiercer than their frail forms suggest. Unfortunately, the darkness of the race wars has left a permanent stain on elven culture, with some nations becoming so obsessed with war that they have made pacts with dark spirits, and have even started performing the art of necromancy. But these nations are small and hidden in the dark places of the planet. Though this makes them less influential in general, it makes them all the more dangerous. Seasons of Life: The Elven Life-cycle The Elves' connection to nature is so profound, that even their own life-cycles can be closely compared to it. The Elven lifespan is as chaotic as nature itself. Some lives and calm and enduring, like the ancient trees they build their civilizations around. Others are turbulent and reckless; extinguished well before their due time. For this reason, determining the average Elven lifespan is difficult. Some have lived a millennium or more, while others reach their twilight years in a few centuries. Almost all Elven lives, however, do follow a life progression that closely mimics the seasons. Appropriately named the Seasons of Life, each stage of life shares many traits with its seasonal counterpart. Spring and Adolescence The early years of Elven life begin with youthful enthusiasm and learning. Young elves grow to become adolescents rather quickly, but their adventurous spirit and insatiable desires for exploration remain throughout this life season. Gleeful, joyous, and rambunctious are all adequate descriptions of Elves experiencing this season. For many, the Elven Spring is cut short from necessity but it may still last five decades or more. Almost always, the life season of Spring concludes with the Pilgrimage--an adolescent Elf's ascension to adulthood. Summer and Adulthood The Elven Summer is a time for labor. Productivity and innovation now trump youthful diversions. The beginnings of Summer are often met with stormy resistance as young adults slowly find their niche in life. As trade skills are honed, the season calms and an adult begins their work to stabilize and grow the community. The Summer is also a time for passion where couples come together and expand the community through more intimate means. The Elven Summer is not all work, after all. Autumn and Midlife After the Summer has come and gone, it is time to reap the benefits of those centuries of labor. With the many hard years of service to the community behind them, Elves are once again free to pursue their own personal interests. For many, this means leading the community that they have helped to build; teaching Springlings patient enough to listen, or passing off trade secrets to the up-and-coming fledgling workers. Others recede into the wilderness to attune themselves with nature and its preservation. For those that have progressed beyond the needs of their community, they are rarely seen again. Autumn is the time to finish life-long goals before the Winter comes. Winter and the Last Days The advent of Winter marks the ending of an Elven life. Many centuries in the making, the time of Winter is a time of reflection. It is a look back at an era of accomplishment and failure alike. Elves of this age are seen as uppity or aloof by non-Elves for dawn of Winter leaves little time for idle chatter. A Winterling with nothing to do is just waiting for death to come, and even after a millennium of life, no Elf is anxious to tread beyond the veil of life. Surprisingly, a Winterling remains both spry and attentive up until the very last days of Winter. Because of their magical nature, the rigors of time do not cripple the body or the mind as they do with other races. For this reason, the icy grip of death comes suddenly with only a few days of illness as prior warning.